you are feeling very sleepy

June 10, 2007 4:34 PM

Can you bank sleep? And if not - how much sleep is too much?
posted by luriete to health & fitness (11 comments total)

I have always read that sleep cannot be banked. As far as how much is too much, I'd think that would vary pretty widely by person. I myself tend to feel pretty crummy whenever I "force" myself to sleep past my first wakeup of the morning. As a new mom, I've occasionally had times when my husband would offer to take the baby in the morning so I can sleep in, and I've made myself keep trying to fall back to sleep just because I felt like I should. Inevitably, I feel groggier and grumpier after numerous dozings and wakings. /anecdote
posted by justonegirl at 4:57 PM on June 10, 2007

I believe that studies done by the Walter Reed Army Institute Research showed that there is no real way to build up "sleep debt". Fatigue can only be mitigated by getting sufficient rest or by frequent napping.

At 24 hours without sleep, their studies have shown that participants doing simple tasks performed at the same level as someone that is legally drunk. The similar studies came to the comclusion that sleeping less then 6 hours or more than 10 hours a night routinely would statistically (whatever that means) result in a shorter life span.
posted by 543DoublePlay at 4:57 PM on June 10, 2007

No.
posted by caddis at 5:17 PM on June 10, 2007

my boss is 63, and sleeps about 4 hours a night. but he works harder than anyone i have met - the point is he does that every day. you get used to what you are used to, so to avoid fatigue the pattern of sleep is more important than the length - that is why when you try and sleep in it just confuses the body more.
posted by edtut at 5:29 PM on June 10, 2007

if you're reasonably alert and feel like getting up, by all means. if you get tired during the day, take a short nap. you might be one of the lucky few, like the boss above, who really can thrive on less sleep. you would know if you weren't getting enough--you would feel it.

you can incur a "sleep debt"--a lot of people try to get by on 5 hours a night during the week and then sleep 10 or 12 hours a night on the weekend--but it's pretty hard to "stock up" for future sleeplessness. the best thing you can do, i guess, is if you forsee a crazy week ahead is to make sure you sleep as long as you can naturally for a week or so before (no alarms or anything) so you're as rested as possible going into it.

i am not a doctor, but i am a lifelong insomniac and studier of all things sleep. :)
posted by thinkingwoman at 6:24 PM on June 10, 2007

One of the first things you learn in psych class is that you can't 'bank' up sleep. And they say the first night you have a chance you'll sleep however much you need and that's as 'caught up' as you'll get.
posted by CwgrlUp at 6:52 PM on June 10, 2007

I'd say no, based purely on my own meandering experience.
posted by Effigy2000 at 7:31 PM on June 10, 2007

As a chronic "fragile sleeper" (that's the diagnosis, which doesn't help much) and student of sleep and insomnia, I agree, you can't bank sleep, both from my reading and my experience. unfortunately, you can accumulate sleep deficit, though you (thank God) don't need to make it all up.

however, I don't care what they say, if i'm sleeping badly and getting 3-4 hours a night, I don't sleep however much I need when I can (I wish oh that would be great). That, however, is another story.
posted by judybxxx at 7:34 PM on June 10, 2007

I know people say you can't, but I think to a certain extent I can. I am pretty sensitive to being tired, and prefer about ten hours a night (though I don't always get it). Leading up to something where I know I will be sleeping less, I will be sure I get my ten hours for a few days and it will take a few days for the undersleeping to make me miserable. Likewise, I was on vacation a few weeks ago, and spent a week sleeping as much as I wanted. After coming home, it took about a week and a half for me to start getting tired before it was time to go to bed (ie, feeling sleepy at 5, though I can't sleep till 8).
posted by dame at 6:07 AM on June 11, 2007

I'm a champion sleeper - at 35, I can still sleep the same 12 or 14 hours I could when I was 16. If I get in a good 14 hours of rest, I'm good for 24 alert and awake hours.

YMMV
posted by DarlingBri at 9:32 AM on June 11, 2007

I don't get tired as early if I have a good night's sleep the day before, and I definitely have noticed that after two consecutive days of deprivation/extra sleep, I'm worse/better off than after just one.

But I'm no psychologist.
posted by Mr. Gunn at 2:14 PM on June 11, 2007